Subject One Hundred Thirty-six

THE BLESSINGS OF THE GOSPEL

Scripture: Acts 26:18

1. Eyes are opened
   1. Man is born blind. He does not know God, life, or even himself.
   2. When man hears the gospel and believes in Jesus, his eyes are opened by the Holy Spirit. He then is able to know God, life, himself, and the Savior.
2. Men are turned from darkness to light
   1. Man is born in darkness. This is evidenced by two facts.
      1. Man cannot see God; he can neither know nor understand the things of God.
      2. Man has no joy; this is because there is misery in darkness.
   2. Though we are born in darkness, when we believe the gospel and receive the life of Christ, we are turned to light. The gospel of God is light, because God is light and the life of Christ is also light. When we have the light within, we are able to see clearly and we have joy.
3. Men are turned from the power of Satan unto God
   1. Man is born under the power of Satan and is controlled and enslaved by Satan. For example:
      1. A man commits sins not merely by himself. Many people do not want to do evil, but they cannot help themselves. Some even commit crimes. This is because man is under the control of Satan. Please tell me, who wants to do evil? Man does evil which he does not want to do. This proves that man is under Satan’s control.
      2. Because man is under the power of Satan, he cannot refuse death. He cannot be free from sin, neither can he be free from death.
   2. When a man hears the gospel and receives Christ, he is freed from the power of Satan. Through His death on the cross Christ destroyed the one who had the power of death, the Devil. When one turns to Christ, he is delivered from the power of Satan unto God and is freed from sin and death.
4. Forgiveness of sins is received through faith
   1. Man is of the world from his birth; he is common and unholy. He has nothing to do with God and is unable to partake of the riches of God’s inheritance.
   2. When he receives Christ, he is separated from the world and is sanctified unto God. Now he is the partaker of God’s divine nature as well as God’s inheritance.
   3. The inheritance of God includes present and eternal blessings. In order that we may actually obtain this inheritance, God has granted us both the life and the foretaste of this inheritance. The life is the life of God, and the foretaste is the Holy Spirit. These qualify us to enjoy and obtain this inheritance.
5. How to obtain the blessings of the gospel
   1. Repent and believe.
   2. Receive Jesus as your Savior.